News Article
Casting: Mother Courage And Her Children
07 Jul 24
Tom Melly announces his cast for Mother Courage... opening 8 October
Mother Courage is considered by some to be the greatest play of the 20th century, and perhaps also the greatest anti-war play of all time. It follows the fortunes of Anna Fierling, nicknamed Mother Courage, a wily canteen woman with the Swedish Army, who is determined to make her living from the war.
Over the course of the play, she loses all three of her children, Schweizerkas, Eilif, and Kattrin, to the very war from which she tried to profit.
The auditions for this one were a lot of fun, albeit a case of quality over quantity, and I'm looking forward immensely to working on this wonderful play with a truly excellent cast.
The play is set in a world where virtue is a handicap, rewards and punishments are arbitrary, and an endless war will need feeding. So obviously, we will be aiming for a fast-paced, savage, funny, and blood-soaked pantomime, along with a healthy pinch of The Marx Brothers and '30s screwball comedies.
Despite Brecht's rejection of naturalistic, empathic drama, Mother Courage is one of theatre's most enigmatic, complex women, rivalling anything by Checkov or Ibsen, and I can't wait to see where Ingrid takes it.
One bit of exciting casting news is the inclusion of an actor from the Youth Theatre, Carys le Marechal, who will be taking on the complex role of Kattrin, the abused, mute and traumatised daughter (see? I told you it was funny).
See you in October!
Tom Melly
Director
Cast:
Mother Courage: Ingrid Miller
Eilif: Tom Louis
Swiss Cheese: Blue Summer
Kattrin: Carys le Maréchal
Cook: Jason Rosenthal
Chaplain: Darren Chancey
Yvette: Eliza Aquilina
Company 1: Fuad Kamil
Company 2: Tirusanthan Thiruvilangam
Company 3: Edmund Aubrey
Company 4: Ashwin Tharoor
Company 5: Luke Hudson
Mother Courage And Her Children runs 8-12 October. Early bird tickets will be on sale soon.